If you own a Jeep Wrangler for a couple of years, you’re bound to confront the problem of faded fender flares. They start out a nice shiny black and gradually fade to a crappy dull gray after a year or two in the sun. Products like Armor All or 303 will keep your flares shiny and black for a while, but one good rain will kill that pretty quickly. Another option is painting your flares, which unfortunately requires a lot of work and can be scraped/scratched off on the trails.
To many Jeep owners, this isn’t even a thought, you just do it (lift first…ask questions later). Truthfully, that’s what I did. However, I’d encourage any new Jeep owner to step back and think about whether a lift kit is REALLY the right decision for them before taking the plunge.Why, you ask? Well, for the uninitiated, lifting a Jeep typically isn’t as simple as bolting on the kit and then living happily ever after. Suspension lifts, specifically, will change the geometry of how your suspension was originally designed to work. I won’t bore you with the specifics of control arm length, alignment specs, and pinion angles, but suffice to say that you’ll be tweaking all of these at some point after your lift (something the catalogs forget to mention in their marketing copy). So, learn from my experiences young Padawan, and hopefully you’ll save some cash and frustration along the way.
Here are some things to think about BEFORE you purchase a lift kit for your Jeep: Read more…
Thinking about leveraging the government’s rebate program to get yourself a new ride? Here are a few important facts that you need to know.
Your turn-in vehicle needs to be a maximum of 25 years old
Turn-in vehicle fuel mileage must be a maximum of 18 MPG – In the Jeep world, nearly all models will satisfy this requirement (e.g. Wrangler, CJ, Cherokee, Waggy, J Truck, Commander, Liberty). Let’s face it, the majority of Jeeps get crappy mileage. It looks like the Compass and Patriot are the rare exceptions here since their combined fuel mileage (city & highway) averages over 18 MPG
If you’ve got an old Jeep, or you live in a snowy region, you can be pretty sure that you’re going to deal with rust at some point. I live in New England, so unfortunately I gotta deal with salt. Helpful tip- margarita on the rocks w/ salt = tasty….Jeep on the rocks w/ salt = rusty.
In my case, my Jeeperman rocker guards were thrashed. My rocker guards came from Jeeperman with a black powder coat on them (my first mistake). I learned the hard way that powder coating and New England winters just don’t mix. I think my rocker guards lasted about 2 months before they started bubbling and peeling. The powder coating on my Skid Row Engine Skid lasted a little longer, but wasn’t too much better. I now avoid powder coated parts whenever possible. No sense paying extra for this stuff when it doesn’t even last a year. FYI, if you’re buying bumpers, rocker guards, or skid plates most of the smaller manufacturers will ship them to you bare. Read more…
After a lift, your Jeep will NOT ride like it did when it was stock height (don’t believe the marketing hype or message boards)
You WILL spend significantly more money on your Jeep after the lift kit is installed
Lift kits lead to bigger tires. Bigger tires lead to new steering parts, better brakes, gearing upgrades, a stronger tire carrier, refinancing your house, etc.
Your wife/girlfriend will complain that your Jeep is hard to get into and is scary to drive
33-inch tires will start to look tiny. Your brain does strange things in an effort to make you justify that 38’s are the new 33’s
How do you get rid of your old shed?….well, fire up your Jeep and smash into it of course! I wonder how many nails he pulled out of his tires afterwards?
Why, you ask? Well, for the uninitiated, lifting a Jeep typically isn’t as simple as bolting on the kit and then living happily ever after. Suspension lifts, specifically, will change the geometry of how your suspension was originally designed to work. I won’t bore you with the specifics of control arm length, alignment specs, and pinion angles, but suffice to say that you’ll be tweaking all of these at some point after your lift (something the catalogs forget to mention in their marketing copy). So, learn from my experiences young Padawan, and hopefully you’ll save some cash and frustration along the way. 
